President’s Message

Dear Colleagues, distinguished guests,

It is an honor and great pleasure to welcome and host all of you to the United Arab Emirates, in particular, in our beautiful capital Abu Dhabi, at the eighth session of the Conference of the States Parties to the United Nations Convention against Corruption (COSP8).

We are cooperating very closely with UNODC’s Corruption and Economic Crime Branch in making this event a special occasion and in creating a productive forum, which will enhance international cooperation and enable all the participants to engage more effectively and efficiently in the fight against corruption.

The United Nations Convention against Corruption is the only legally binding universal anti-corruption instrument. I therefore wish to highlight the importance of concerted efforts at the international, regional and national levels to prevent and combat corruption in its all forms and to reduce its negative impact both on societies as a whole and on the lives of ordinary citizens.

The Supreme Audit Institution (SAI) of the United Arab Emirates is the central anti-corruption authority. SAI monitors the implementation of the Convention and develops the necessary measures to enhance the national legislation in order to ensure its compliance with the requirements and provisions of the Convention. Through a national expert team, the SAI conducts the follow-up of the review of the United Arab Emirates under the Implementation Review Mechanism as well as participates in the country reviews when the UAE serves as a reviewing State party.

As far as the UAE is concerned, the country went through an astonishing journey in the previous forty years. The amazing leap of growth accompanied by distinctive geographical location enabled the country to become a major destination both for foreign direct investments, as well as for tourists. As the SAI, we strive to develop as fast and as efficiently as the country. The growth of the country’s resources has been rapid, and our task therefore has become more challenging. I am proud to say that these challenges have been faced and dealt with professionally, which in turn enable us today to perform our duties in line with stakeholder expectations.

Leading by example, our Government has always encouraged the protection of public funds and the welfare of the local citizens of the UAE. As the trust in our SAI has been established, we have been asked to extend our duties to cover fighting fraud and corruption resulting in the responsibility for managing the requirements of the United Nations Convention against Corruption.

I, once again, welcome you to your second home the United Arab Emirates.